1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to rotary devices that may be employed as either pumps, including compressors, or engines, including motors. More particularly, this invention relates to an improvement in devices that are known as either rotary vee devices or the so-called angle piston type devices and that may be employed as pumps for pumping or compressing fluids, particularly compressible fluids; or as engines, including motors powered by either compressible or incompressible fluids and engines powered by internal combustion of a fuel.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As delineated in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,830,208, entitled "Vee Engine", a wide variety of devices of the so-called angle piston type have been employed variously as: universal joints for transmitting forces, pumps, compressors, fluid powered motors and rotaty vee engines. In addition to the U.S. patents cited therein, a plurality of patents were cited against that application, including United States, British and French patents. Despite the large number of prior art references, none of the references described apparatus that was completely satisfactory in valving; particularly that had the following desirable features. 1. The device should allow pumping by having a structure whereby a discharge can be opened slightly after bottom dead center.
2. The device should allow compressing a fluid to line pressure before opening to discharge the fluid into the line if employed as a compressor or the like.
3. The device should allow valving to control timing for intake and discharge independently of the relative position of the piston axially of the cylinder. Expressed otherwise, the device should allow valving independently of the axial position of the piston with respect to the cylinder, thereby providing another degree of freedom in design.
4. The device should allow employing centrifugally assisted scavenging as described and claimed in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,905,338, entitled "Vee Engine With Centrifugally Assisted Scavenging"; the descriptive matter of which is embodied therein by reference for details omitted herefrom.
5. The device should allow employing a center section compressor and if employed as an engine, bypass throttling, such as described in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,468, entitled "Center Section Compressor", and U.S. application Ser. No. 520,435; the descriptive matter of both being embodied herein by reference for details omitted herefrom.
6. The device should allow opening for discharge of a fluid, later opening for intake, scavenging, closing the discharge and building to supercharge pressures, such as has been unable to be accomplished with conventional two cylce porting.
7. The device should allow flexibility in firing systems that are desired to be employed when employed as an internal combustion engine.
8. The device should allow for being designed as a compressor, as a pump, as a hydraulic motor, as a stream engine, and as an internal combustion engine by suitable locations of intake and discharge ports and with suitable intake and discharge flow passageways and areas as will be described in more detail hereinafter.
9. The device should eliminate the use of cams; cam followers; tappets; valves, per se; and eliminate the initial cost and power required for operation, thereby increasing the efficiency of the device.
10. The device should eliminate the maintenance problems with burned valves in internal combustion engines or with breakage of valves in compressors or the like.
11. The device should not require large diameter seal areas, such as having an entire face of the cylinder block moving against a stationary head plate.